BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) - First Niagara Bank expects its $1 billion purchase of HSBC Bank's upstate New York branches to be completed by mid-May and is making plans to consolidate 35 locations where First Niagara and HSBC have buildings within a mile or two of each other.
Buffalo-based First Niagara says 19 of those 35 are HSBC branches that will be absorbed by a nearby First Niagara branch. The other 16 are First Niagara offices that will merge into existing HSBC buildings. All but one of the branches are in upstate New York. The other is in Shelton, Conn.
Friday's announcement follows earlier agreements for First Niagara to sell 64 of the 195 HSBC branches included in the sale to satisfy regulatory concerns.